


We're Robins

by forgetmenotjimmy



Series: Can You Hear Me? [3]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Teen Titans - All Media Types, Titans (TV 2018)
Genre: Awkwardness, Dick Grayson Needs a Hug, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Meetings, Gen, Guilt, Guns, Hero Worship, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, No hugs yet but they'll get there, Pizza, Suicidal Thoughts, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:49:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27655064
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forgetmenotjimmy/pseuds/forgetmenotjimmy
Summary: Jericho dies and the Titans disband. After everyone leaves, Dick shuts down the main computer, gets the gun they’d confiscated from a criminal and goes to sit in his bathtub.He doesn’t know how long he sits there, crying and praying for forgiveness. Desperately wishing for Death as hard as he wants someone to find him.Eventually, someone does.Version 3: Jason: Almost a year after Jason got caught trying to steal the Batmobile’s hubcaps, Bruce sends him to Titan’s tower for a few weeks while he goes off world with the Justice League. Whilst upset his mentor doesn’t seem to trust him to look after Gotham by himself, Jason is excited to meet his hero, the first Robin and all his cool friends.When he gets there though, he finds an almost empty tower and his hero at the end of his rope.
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Jason Todd
Series: Can You Hear Me? [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2014393
Comments: 7
Kudos: 97





	We're Robins

**Author's Note:**

> See End Notes for Trigger Warning
> 
> This fic was requested by the lovely [paradoxInsanity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/paradoxInsanity/pseuds/paradoxInsanity), hope it delivers!  
> Unbeta'd so let me know if you spot anything.  
> Hope you enjoy  
> :D

It wasn’t until Jason was staring at the dead-looking key panel, that he remembered Bruce hadn’t technically told anyone he was coming. Huffing, he stepped back and looked up at the camera above the door. Surprising the first Robin and putting him in awe with his skills had sounded cool back in the Batcave, but now… Maybe someone should have called first.

The Titans Tower looked impressive from the outside. After almost a year at Wayne Manor, Jason had grown accustomed to the finer things, but he still appreciated the clean lines and hi-tech looking equipment. He was also really curious to see their set-up inside: as they were a team, was their training room bigger? Was there an assault course? Moving dummies? A multi-level sparring ring? 

He gave a jaunty wave at the camera, swallowing down his nerves. Glad he’d chosen the back entrance so as not to draw attention with his Robin suit, he still looked around for any intruders in the alleyway. 

He blamed the jangly feeling for taking a minute to notice the camera light going out. Frowning, Jason looked back at the panel. There weren’t any lights on there either. He pressed the call button again and the camera light blinked on for a minute, then went out again.

Was the system on standby mode? Jason got the feeling that no one was home. 

After a slight hesitation, he input the entry code Bruce had given him; the panel beeped once and the door clunked open. Creepy.

At least the elevator was still working. It opened out onto an open place living space filled with sheet-covered furniture. Jason was really confused. Had they moved? He dropped his travel bag and looked around.

You didn’t cover the place like that unless you were leaving somewhere for good, right? He didn’t know personally, but he’d seen enough horror movies to know old, abandoned houses were the only places you saw that kind of thing.

What had happened? 

Yeah, it really would have been good to call ahead.

Well, Jason didn’t want to report to Bruce until he knew something more. They had to have a computer room, he reasoned, and headed off to the left. Only emergency lights lit up the hallway, contributing to the eerie atmosphere, but it wasn’t until Jason heard a noise that his heart began pumping fiercely.

Someone was there.

Jason’s brain belatedly recognized the sound of crying and he felt his pulse in his throat. Looking around, he saw one of the doors was slightly ajar and crept towards it. It led to a bedroom, with furniture also covered in sheets, but on the bed was a duffle bag and another door inside the room was open. Jason took out a throwing star - couldn’t be too careful - and peered into the other room. 

It was a bathroom and the crying was definitely coming from there but he couldn’t see anyone from where he was standing. Carefully, he stole forward and poked his head around the door.

Surprise made him lose his balance and half-fall through the doorway.

Dick Grayson was sitting in the bath holding his head in his hands. Or trying to, it was difficult with a gun in one hand.

At Jason’s clumsy entrance, the OG Boy Wonder snapped out of whatever it was he was going through and pointed the gun right at Jason’s heart. On instinct, Jason threw the star and Grayson dropped the gun which clattered between his legs into the tub. 

“Who the Hell are you?” Grayson demanded, scrambling to his feet.

“The new Robin!” Jason blurted, inwardly cursing how his voice had cracked a little.

So much for making a good first impression.

Grayson frowned, the expression not looking very threatening with his cheeks wet with tears. He was also cradling the hand hit by the throwing star. Jason couldn’t see if there was any blood, but it had to have hurt even if it hadn’t broken the skin.

“Hey, you pointed a gun at me, man!” Jason protested when the silence went on for a few seconds too long.

Grayson blinked, gaze shifting between the gun and Jason. Holding up his hands, Jason wondered if he was going to have to fight his hero in under two minutes of meeting him. On top of the crying, Grayson looked terrible: bags under his eyes, limp, unwashed hair and the kind of ‘haven’t-slept-in-days’ energy in his limbs. While Jason was confident he could take him, he really didn’t want it to come to that.

Thankfully Grayson’s shoulders slumped and he rubbed his face with his uninjured hand. 

“Bruce sent you.” He said with a heavy sigh.

“Yeah, the old man’s going off on some League business for a while so, he thought I could pick up some skills with you and your pals.” 

Grayson huffed, muttering something under his breath. Without looking at Jason, he bent to pick up the gun and climbed out of the tub. Now that the spike of adrenaline had worn off, Jason’s mind was able to start working again.

“So where is everyone?”

“Gone.” Grayson answered, almost shouldering Jason out of the way as he left the bathroom. Jason danced back and then darted in to retrieve his throwing star. No blood. Good. 

He put it away and followed Grayson into the bedroom, watching him unload the gun and stuff both it and the clip in the duffle.

“You get that from Bruce or were you always this cryptic?”

“This is none of your business.” Grayson bit out, grabbing the bag and his jacket. He turned to Jason, jaw tightening as he gave the new Robin once over. “Look, I don’t know what he told you, but the Titans are done.”

He looked away abruptly and Jason had some more pieces to play with.

He probed. “Something happened. Something bad.”

“What did or did not happen-”

“So bad you figured you’d end it all.” Jason spat out, suddenly angry.

Robins didn’t quit. Robins didn’t stop fighting. Again and again Bruce had drilled him in the principles of evasion, defensive tactics, fighting for his life.

_ You never stop, not even when your limbs were broken and you were bleeding from multiple holes. You keep fighting until you win or escape. _

Not that Jason had needed much practice; he’d spent most of his life fighting just to get by. He knew the meaning of survival of the fittest. The meaning of true grit.

So for the original Robin, Jason’s hero, to just give up?

Jaosn hated it.

Grayson swallowed, still not looking at him; the grip on his bag tightened and his breathing hitched.

Jason’s anger burned hotter. “Is that why you quit and left Gotham? Because it got too hard?”

Grayson closed his eyes. “Go home, kid. There’s nothing for you here.”

Still furious, Jason snapped. “I can see that. And what are you going to do? Dive off the pier?”

Grayson opened his eyes, turning his head slowly and staring at Jason. Beginning to come back himself, Jason’s breathing levelled out. 

With a tiny sardonic smile, Grayson said. “I remember having more tact when talking to jumpers.”

“The comforting part’s not really my jam.” Jason shrugged though his heart dropped. He’d let his expectations cloud his judgement; his hero worship and past experiences had made him lash out at a suicidal person...who still had the gun. Bruce would be disappointed. They were never meant to hurt victims, even if those victims were former heroes.

For some bizarre reason though, his answer loosened something in Grayson’s stance.

“What’s your name?”

“Jason Todd.”

Grayson nodded once. “You go on the coach like that?”

“Nah, I ducked onto a roof. I got a bag.” 

A beat, and then Grayson started pulling on his jacket. “Come on, let’s go get pizza.”

Twenty minutes later, Jason and Dick were sitting in the booth of a nearby pizzeria. Jason had changed into civvies and both of their bags at their feet. Two large pizzas were on the table, but neither of them was eating beyond a few bites. 

Tapping the table absent-mindedly, Jason struggled to come to terms with the bizarreness of the situation. Not the eating pizza part; when day-dreaming about his visit, Jason had imagined sharing meals with the group. It was something they did in TV shows: hanging out in diners and having a ‘regular’ place they all went to and it looked like so much fun.

No, it was the awkward shared knowledge hanging between them that was surreal. Jason really did not want to talk about it and he figured Dick wanted to even less. But Jason couldn’t unsee it. He couldn’t stop wondering what Dick would do once they parted ways. 

Beyond telling Jason to call him ‘Dick’, the older Robin had barely said anything. Jason didn’t know where the other Titans were or why they were ‘done’. He didn’t even know why they were having pizza together: was it an apology for almost shooting at him? Or was it Dick’s go-to when babysitting random kids who were suddenly in his care?

“So how long have you and Bruce…?” Dick asked finally.

Relieved for a relatively safe topic of conversation, Jason launched into the story and told Dick all about how awesome his life was now. Although he still wasn’t talkative, Dick did interject every now and then with comments or comparing his own experience.

After they’d eaten most of their pizzas, Dick offered. “I can still give you a tour, if you like.”

A few hours ago, Jason would have jumped at the chance whilst still trying to play it cool, but he saw how much Dick really did not want to go back to the Tower. 

Jury was still out on what kind of hero he was, but Dick Grayson wasn’t a bad guy. How many other people would voluntarily go back to a place that obviously held so many bad memories for some kid they’d just met?

Jason shrugged. “Eh, once you’ve seen the Cave, you’ve seen the best there is, right?”

Dick studied him a moment, likely puzzling out his change of tune. Then he shrugged and signalled the waitress for their check. “Well, I don’t really know any good places to stay in the city but-”

“Nah man, I’m coming with you.”

Dick sat back, expression coming across as annoyed but his eyes were super focused; Jason figured that was his ‘detective face’. Even in the short time he’d known him, Jason liked that look. It was similar to what he’d imagined Dick would be like: smart, powerful, experienced and almost untouchable. 

Not as human and broken as he’d seen so far.

“As I said, the Titans-”

“I don’t give a shit about the Titans. It’s you I want to learn from.”

“Language.” Dick replied, seemingly automatically.

Jason huffed. “Sorry,  _ Alfred _ .”

Putting his hands on the table, Dick said slowly. “I fu-messed up, big time, and now the team has gone their separate ways. You don’t want to learn anything from me.”

“Not even somersaults? Cos Bruce isn’t much of a tumbler and he said you were an acrobat.”

Irritation flashed in brown eyes. “I’m being serious.”

“So am I. Bruce wouldn’t have let me come here if he thought it would be a waste of time. I don’t care what happened to your team, if Bruce thinks you can teach me stuff, I want to learn.”

“I can’t…” Dick trailed off when the waitress brought the check over. He flashed her a smile and counted out some bills.

Wordlessly, they got their bags and returned to Dick’s car. Once they were settled in, Dick opened his mouth but Jason beat him to it.

“My mom killed herself.”

Dick’s mouth clicked shut and he looked over at Jason, startled.

Sniffing and looking out the window, Jason continued. “Not on purpose. Or maybe, I dunno. She was so high all the time it was hard to tell if she knew she’d taken too much.”

Jason turned to Dick. “I was angry at her for a long time. For giving up and leaving me with fucking Uncle Ray, who was not the fun uncle kind. I couldn’t understand how she could have done that.”

It was the most he’d ever shared of himself and his past. Bruce had looked him up in the system, probably snooped on the scant therapist notes attached to his file, so he knew the story. Not how Jason had felt though. He’d never wanted to talk about it, still didn’t. 

But among the combat training, hacking tutorials and other cool topics of study to be Robin, Bruce had also talked about strength of the mind, of mastering your emotions, all the pain, and using it to help people. 

Jason couldn’t punch feelings, couldn’t chase off whatever messed up things were in the older Robin’s head. So there was this...

“I was angry a lot, still am, according to the old man. Some of that anger is for myself, that I couldn’t help my mom when she needed it.”

Dick sighed but his tone was firm. “Jason, she wasn’t your responsibility and I’m not either.”

“We’re Robins.” Jason replied, as if that explained it all.

After a beat, Dick nodded, so maybe it did. 

“How long till Bruce gets back?”

“Two, three weeks tops.” Jason answered, hopes rising as he saw Dick’s body language change.

Dick nodded again. “Cool, you ever been to Disneyland?”

Jason whooped and Dick chuckled, turning his key and starting the engine.

**Author's Note:**

> TW: Jason finds Dick crying with a gun in his hand. It’s not pointed at himself but it is implied that he was having suicidal thoughts.  
> I don’t have the time or energy to write a road trip fic with these two but that’s definitely what they do next.  
> Ages: Jason: 14, Dick: 19
> 
> So justification for Bruce sending Jason off to the Titans without asking or even checking what the current situation was: he may be a master tactician and detective but has a massive blindspot when it comes to his kids. The type of guy who implants his kid with a tracker but doesn’t contact him in a year, not even to tell him there’s a new Robin. I can so imagine Bruce every so often tracking Dick and using CCTV to watch him for a few hours because he misses him and can’t pick up the phone like a normal person.  
> Also at this point in time he’s only an emergency contact for the League so wouldn't be up to date with news (aka Garth’s death).


End file.
